Historic Residence

By Naperville Magazine
Appears in the November 2021 issue.

By Christie Willhite

It’s the rare luxury listing that can offer a catalog of modern dream home amenities in a property steeped in history. This Nantucket-style house, on nearly 2.5 acres overlooking the 14th fairway of the historic Chicago Golf Club near Wheaton, delivers on both. Known originally as the Gatehouse Lodge, the home was designed by renowned architect Jarvis Hunt and built in the late 1890s for several founding members of the club, including agriculturalist James Deering, Chicago Board of Trade secretary Edward Worthington, and Charles Blair Macdonald, who designed the original course and is regarded as the first golf course architect. The house has welcomed five U.S. presidents—the first being William Howard Taft—who visited or stayed for golf events, owner Jeff Winternheimer says. The house became a private residence in the 1940s and, since buying the property in 2010, Winternheimer has completed a full renovation. Along with seven bedrooms and nine baths, the home’s 10,000-plus square feet include a gourmet kitchen with stone countertops and fireplace, a service kitchen, trophy room, tea room, exercise room, movie theater, gallery, and heated sunroom. Finishing touches include cedar roofing, copper gutters, and marble and gold-leaf bathrooms. “It has many large, beautiful trees with absolute privacy,” Winternheimer says. “It is like living in your own personal private park.” $2 million | 25W431 Plamondon Rd., Wheaton

Photo courtesy Michael LaFido